> Do you mean that you are interested in replacing the CORBA
> communication between your server and client with Z39.50
> communication? If not, I'm not sure I understand how you see
> Z39.50 fitting into your architecture.
>
> > On visiting http://www.loc.gov/z3950/agency/zng.html I have
> seen a lot
> > of anologies in ZNG and our search/retrieval service.
I think you should look at
http://www.loc.gov/z3950/agency/zing/zing.html which I think contains
the sort of information you are looking for (it also includes a link to
a paper of mine of how to implement the whole of Z39.50 as a WebService,
which I occasionally role out when Mike mentions his Evil Empire paper
to hint that I'm not necessarily as radical as he makes out ;-) )
> You should probably think twice before comitting to ZNG.
> Although it has a lot of weight behind it (i.e. some of the
> most respected Z39.50 people), it is still a very new are
> somewhat experimental initiative. Others may know better, but
> I'm not aware of any "real" ZNG servers or clients yet --
> just testing/evaluation systems.
This is true, and you should also note that the specification is
labelled "prototype". This is partly as it is not officially any part of
the Z39.50 standard and as yet how and if it may become part of the
Z39.50 standard is not clear. It isn't meant to replace Z39.50 but
whether it stands alongside Z39.50 as a separate entity or whether the
experiment informs future directions that Z39.50 may take are very much
open questions.
However, the experiment is about implementing this stuff rather than
discussing the philosophies (we can do that after we have some hard
facts/experiences to build on). So if you wish to participate, given
that you have experience in this area you would be welcome.
Matthew